Freelance Writers/Reporters Needed

Interested in a basketball related career? If so there is no better way to get a foot on-board than becoming a freelance reporter. Currently I’m heading the California segment of a high school basketball recruiting site called Illinoishsbasketball.com, soon to become national with the start of a new organization. What I’m looking for is young and ambitious individuals who have a sincere passion for basketball. You don’t have to know an extreme amount about the game although it helps if you do, all we ask is that you do your best reporting on the game here oVeniceBeach01n the West Coast. We don’t require any experience and will credit your work on our site by way of your name, your website, and a picture. So if you’re in California and have interest dropping by a few games to watch some of the best players in the country and potentially future NBA players then contact me right away. Remember no experience is necessary just passion for the sport.

Join us on Facebook at: California Prep Basketball Network

Contact Dino if interested at: dino.gomez22@yahoo.com

On Twitter? Follow @DinoGomez

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Thanks for inviting me to this Blog–Randy Brown

Thanks Dino for inviting me.

In my post-college coaching career I have dedicated myself to assisting the world wide basketball community with several programs and resources.

My web site, CoachRB.com, provided a wealth of time tested information from my 30+ year career as a high school and college coach.icon

My College Coach Now program assists prospective NCAA college coaches by providing programs to quickly move them ahead to their goal. Over the past 30 years I have helped over 100 coaches become college coaches at all levels.

My new venture, WinningPlays.net, is a service that provides via email a winning set play every day of the year. 365 plays. It will launch on September 1st but ordering will begin in the next week. Go to http://winningplays.net

I write nationally for several publications, speak at many clinics, and do video editing for FIBA through Sideline Sports of Iceland.

Lastly, I am the owner and lead instructor of the Iowa Player Development Academy. We are dedicated to teaching players “HOW” to play the game of baskeball. We are the only program of it’s kind anywhere in Iowa.

My goal is to improve coaching in our country by developing a coach certification program by next summer. I will have coaches attending from around the globe and throughout the US in this one of a kind venture. Stay tuned.

My email is rb@coachrb.com so feel free to email me about any of the above.

Randy Brown

CoachRB.com

Iowa Player Development Academy

Steve Nash Creates A Global Sports Social Network

Back to Back MVP winner and regretfully not Back to Back to Back MVP winner, Steve Nash, has gone nash_0506mvp_indexahead and created a global sports social network called MakeItPro. I regretfully say not 3 years in a row MVP winner because Nash’s numbers were all better the year following his 2 MVP seasons but the fans were ready for a new MVP and instead voted away from him… anyways Nash has gone ahead and invested money, time, and thought into creating this network that brings together coaches, players, kids, parents, and basically an entire sports community to interact with one another. It is free to join and is a “one stop destination for anyone passionate about sports.” So far I count only 3 professional NBA players that have joined but there are many other pro athletes that have jumped on board from other sports.

A few things lead me to believe this will network will become huge among pros and joes. One, Steve Nash has a personality that people like. Players and fans respect him and appreciate what he represents. Nash is the kind of guy who makes ammends with another player who months before whacked him into the scores table intentionally during a Spurs and Suns Playoff game. Yes I’m talking about Robert Horry. Nash doesn’t make enemies. Se1216horry-autosized258cond, Nash has the power to build this network up very quickly. He has the money and the media to get sponsors and programs involved. Finally everyone is social networking these days as the best means to marketing themselves and potentially their company. Add in an abundance of social media “experts” roaming around and you get a bunch of Internet users who understand that the more networks they take part in, the better they stand to connect with others and market themselves. In other words, people are going to join MakeItPro as soon as they learn it exists.

Follow me on Twitter: @DinoGomez.

Tribute to Lute Olson

It was amazing to speak with Randy Brown about his days coaching alongside Lute Olson.  The way Randy spoke about Lute told you just how much he learned from him and how much he admired the person he is. Randy didn’t simply say Lute was an amazing coach, he said Lute is an amazing person.OlsonGraphic

I met Lute once when I was 13.  I attended his basketball camp in Tucson, Arizona about 9 years back. It was a week long camp which included a personal photo opp with the coach. I’ll never forget that camp simply because the demonstrations from current and past Arizona players were spectacular. It was every kids dream to attend Lute’s camp and you know the man himself wasn’t just trying to make an extra buck by hosting a summer camp. Lute was there to help kids learn basketball correctly and build an audience for the university in which he represented. That is why Lute is awesome and why he is loved by everyone in the basketball community.

On August 8th, 2009 coach Lute Olson is to be recognized for his amazing Hall of Fame Career at the University of Arizona at which he coached. In his tenure with the University he contributed to 11 Pac-10 titles, 23 consecutive NCAA appearances, 4 final fours, and a national championship in 1997. The ceremony will last from 11Am until 12:30 Pm at the McKale Memorial Center in Tucson. The event will include presentations from NBA players that Lute coached as well as a highlight reel of bits and pieces of those 23 seasons in which he led the Wildcats to the Big dance and beyond. The ceremony is free to the public and is sure to be amazing so be sure to stop by with a friend. Thanks again for everything Lute! Arizona fans will never forget you.

Tony Vallario: Founder of SportCue

Tony Vallario is the founder and creator of the newest social networking platform, SportCue. I found SportCue via a recommendation I received over on LinkedIn for a new type of “Facebook” that is directed at those individuals within the sporting industry. What a brilliant idea! A social networking platform that is solely for those within the niche of sports.logo

SportCue is still just breaking into the market having launched only two weeks ago. Upon visiting the platform and signing up I immediately found myself pondering the potential it has for growth and success. I reached out to Tony and contacted him right away. I wanted to be the first to interview him about SportCue as well as ask him what his plans are for the company’s future.

Q.1. Tony, you created a new sports social networking platform that seems to be a mesh between LinkedIn and Facebook but that is for those individuals involved with a sports-related career. Can you tell us about SportCue in general? What made you decide to pursue such a project and what is your goal for SportsCue?

1) “Sportcue.copicm is an on-line social medium designed specifically for those either within, or looking to get involved in, the sport industry. Whether it be through rec, collegiate, semi-pro, pro, entrepreneurial business ventures, etc. revolving around sport, Sportcue.com is a platform with which individuals could connect with one another and share views, information, opinions, stories, pictures, etc. As you mentioned, similar to that of LinkedIn and Facebook, it truly is just a “concentrated and niche” social network.

What ultimately got me started on Sportcue.com is that I came up with an idea when I was in grad school about a business revolving around the recruitment of high school athletes because I personally loved to follow the recruitment of high school football (I used to intern the recruiting dept at Indiana University for the football team throughout the years as a student). I wanted to create a social network that would allow high school athletes to put themselves on the internet and connect with other high school athletes. Then maybe further down the road as this social network grows, collegiate athletic departments would use this platform as a tool to recruit student athletes to their university via searching through the athletes profile, stats, video, etc. Well, as I began creating the business plan for that venture I began to find that there was a tremendous amount of competition that I was unaware of at the time that already had a huge leg up on me (i.e takkle.com, Fox Sports was planning a site, as well as ESPN). So I knew all along that I wanted to do something in relation to sport because that’s my passion, but since that particular field was beginning to crowd pretty quickly, I started to think of other things. That’s when I came up with the idea for Sportcue.com. I knew that the business of sport was growing and was only going to increase its growth in tphotoshop-lighting-bulb-logo-icon33he near future.  That’s how I came up with the idea. I thought, “you know, there are truly a lot of people who are looking to break into the industry, or who are already in the industry and would love to communicate and talk with others in the business”. If I learned one thing from my time at Indiana, it was to always network, and what better way than to do that than through an on-line social network.

Honestly, Sportcue.com is truly still in its beta phase. Yes the site has been around for a few months, but I have big plans for this business. I want to add so many features to the site (i.e. articles, listings of jobs, links to collegiate educational programs that offer sport marketing, management, communication, etc. I want to add forums). There are really so many things that I want to implement into the site, but it will just take time.”

Q.2. SportCue is a very clean platform that is easy to navigate and includes a spot for a personal blog. Did you create this by yourself? In other words, do you have those computer and web design skills yourself or where did you turn to put together such a website?

2) “Yes, the sipicte looks “clean” so to speak, and I hate to say it, but I was certainly not the one who had the skill to create such a design. I laid out what i wanted in terms of features for the site and the platform was created from my ideas not from me (I only wish I could do something like that). The way the site was created was that my cousin, who is a wiz when it comes to computers and such, introduced me to one of his friends who said he could create the site for me for a small fee. I agreed and a few months later, Sportcue.com was up and running. Now I have to say, that I am currently working on trying to get someone new to come in and help take the site to the “level” with which I described above, and hopefully that won’t take me more than just a couple months to iron out.”

Q.3. I see your only 24 years of age, so you’re extremely young. Did you just finish college and get into this project of starting SportCue right away or what was your path to starting SportCue over the last few years? For those entrepreneurs that are just graduating college and whom wish to start their own sports related business, what’s their best first move?

3)” This may spicound funny, and I’m sure some people are going to hate me after they hear or read this, but I feel as if I’m almost old… Yes I’m 24, but I have big plans for this site and I don’t want to waste any time trying to get it to where I think it could and should be. So I’m constantly trying to think of things and implement things to Sportcue.com because I don’t want to have any regrets and I certainly don’t want time to pass me by so to speak. I wish I could have started this venture sooner and maybe it would have been a little further along right now, who knows? Anyway, I graduated undergrad from Indiana University with a BA in Sports Marketing and Management in 2007 and I stayed on to get my masters there in Sport Management (I graduated grad school in the summer of 2008). For any “young people” out there who wish to start there own sport related business, all I have to say is go for it; you honestly have nothing to lose (you will always miss 100% of the shots you don’t take). I’m sure there are countless great ideas floating around out there that revolve around sport, you just have to go after it. Design a business plan, do research, and just go for it… that’s truly the best advice I could give.”

Tony makes starting a social networking platform sound relatively easy with his casual descriptions of the process but I’m guessing he is just quite modest about his own work ethic… either way what a brilliant idea he had during this social networking era that we have just entered. With that said, lets recap Tony’s entreprenueral process to starting SportCue.

  1. Brainstorm Business ideas/Company
  2. Do research on that business idea/the company you want to create.
  3. Network. You have to in order to find business partners/help starting a company.
  4. Create a business plan (needs to be very detailed and is more difficult than suggested)
  5. Double check who your potential competitors are. Tony found he was up against ESPN if he stood with his first company idea.
  6. Try again. As the famous quote goes that Tony reminded us of: “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Allen Iverson certainly understands that.

Thanks again to Tony Vallario for his time and for checking in. Make sure you’re networking at the right place and visit SportCue. Want more Basketball, social media, and the business? Follow @DinoGomez on Twitter.

Randy Brown: Mentor to over 100 Coaches into the Collegiate Level

This past Friday I spoke on the phone for twenty minutes with coach Randy Brown about his coaching career. I asimagesked him a few questions about the process of becoming a coach. In a moment we’ll take a look at those questions and his responses but before we jump into that interview, lets go over his resume.

Randy is a coach of 30 years, 20 of which were with an NCAA team. He has also done work for F.I.B.A, Winning Hoops, and Coach and Athletic Director Magazine. Randy is nationally published and has mentored over 100 coaches into the collegiate level. He has helped develop 12 NBA players including Steve Kerr, Sean Elliot, and Jaamal Tinsley. Randy even coached a while alongside University of Arizona ‘s Lute Olson. Currently he runs an organization which he created called CoachRB, where he helps to mentor other coaches. If you have any interest at all in coaching, be sure to check out his site.

  1. Randy, you are the owner and founder of Coach RB, a website and program that helps to mentor coaches into the collegiate level. Can you tell us about Coach RB and what it encompasses?

Randy Brown– “Well I’ve been coaching for 30 years now. I spent 20 years coaching at the college level 070605dunkand have been fortunate and lucky to have had experience with a bunch of great programs and coaches. So now I’m returning the favor. I use my resources and contacts to help others. I’m very indebted to those who helped me and now I’m just enjoying returning the favor to those who want to learn. In general my site is free to any coach or visitor that wants to learn more about basketball.  Hopefully I’ve provided info that coaches can use and apply.”

2) You have mentored over 100 coaches into the collegiate level from coaching at a lower level such as high school. When you’re helping a coach transition to the college level, what is your main area of focus? In other words, what is the difference between coaching college and high-school hoops outside of the talent level?

Randy Brown: “I would say a couple things. One, a coach needs to know what they are getting into. I’ll tell you that it’s not ESPN, it’s the most physically, emotionally, and mentally demanding job ever. Those that make it as a coach at the college level I call ten percenters. Because only 1 in 10 coaches that come to me and say they wa29ed869nt to be a college coach actually makes it. The others “want to” become college coaches, but lack the desire, energy, and total commitment it takes to do everything possible to make it happen. This is where over 90% of aspiring coaches fail!…. I would also say that it doesn’t matter what you did at any other level.. It doesn’t matter if you have a record as a high school coach that reads 100 to 1 or 1 to 100. Young coaches like to think that because they are winning 70% of the time that they can handle moving up the ranks to the college level. That’s misguided thinking. Many times I scare away young guys that join my program because I’m real with them and tell them what coaching at the college level is going to be. Getting into college is all about your coaching network and the strength of your coaching tree!

The second thing I would say to a coach or teach to a coach trying to to move up is how to network:  how t57145126o meet coaches, how to find a job, or how to find a future job. You have to know to network. Every coach in this business knows just about every other coach in this business. Once a participant does my program, you become aware of the value of developing relationships. A college coach has to be totally committed to their job in every aspect which includes work off the court. I teach the ins and outs of coaching at the college level that are not expected.”

3) I see you graduated from Arizona and were mentored by Lute Olson himself. My father went to Arizona and still currently resides in Tucson . I’m a huge Arizona Wildcats fan and just have to ask you about your experience working with Lute. What did the experience working with him mean to you and out of the many things you gained from coaching alongside him, what is the number one thing you took away?

Randy Brown: “As a young guy growing up in Arizona , Lute was a huge deal. It crushed the people in Iowa when he 29ed869left the University of Iowa for Arizona . But coaching with Lute Olson was like a dream come true. He is a master of so many things. He has one of the sharpest minds in basketball and one of his greatest abilities is making changes in the midst of the game. He does everything well. He recruited extremely well because he is so personable. He always treated everyone kindly. Lute is the most A to Z person I know. He won over 1000 games at all levels which is just a crazy statistic…

Now this may be a surprising answer but the biggest thing I learned from him was how to be personable. As a young high school coach, I wrote Lute a lot to stay in touch or ask for advise. Amazingly, he always wrote a halute_olson1ndwritten note back. He wrote all hand written letters to his recruits. So I adopted that as a coach. Now I’ve written thousands of hand written letters to all types of people for all reasons. He taught me to use the personal touch to develop relationships to build your program the right way.”

4). For those students who are just graduating college who desire a career coaching hoops, what do you suggest is their best first move? How should they go about working their way to becoming a successful coach? Where is the start to a coaching career?

Randy Brown:  “First of all each state has their own coaching certification process. In our state there are certain      29ed869courses you have to take. Anybody can do that. You don’t have to be an education or PE major to get coaching certification. Number two, you need to get experience. Coach a 3rd grade girls team at the YMCA if you need to. But get experience, there’s no replacement for that. Number three, become a student of the game. Convince yourself that you don’t know anything about the game and really study it. There’s nothing like hands on experience so get out there. Find a mentor. If you’re 20 years old, go to the 60 year old coach at a nearby school and sit down for an hour with him/her. In one hour with that coach he will give you all the wisdom and info that you would learn from reading countless books. I’ve mentored a ton of coaches and have helped many into the coaching position they want. The benefits of having a mentor are countless.”

Alright for those aspiring coaches out there this interview was for you. Lets recap what we learned.

  1. You need a coaching mentor- Randy Brown is offering his services to you so be sure to check out his website.
  2. Networking—this is the #1 key to becoming a college basketball coach and is taught in Randy’s CCN (College Coach Now) program.
  3. Get ready for potentially the most intense job possible..
  4. Be personable. Perhaps write a hand-written letter when possible. (Lute taught us that)
  5. Get some experience wherever possible. 3rd grade girls team works.

Thanks again to Randy Brown for his time and wisdom. Want more hoops news? Follow @DinoGomez.

The Funnist Basketball blog goes to… The Basketball Jones

Last night I went browsing through about 20 different basketball blogs that are atop the list of underground3546209620_6af8e89abd_o publications. Thank god I came across The Basketball Jones. These guys are hilarious and have found great success with their site and tv show as a result. It seems they have taken a break this past week from further publication but what they do in general is just great. Here is one of their most recent recorded episodes about the 2009 NBA offseason.

NBA Bloopers for your Saturday

Plain and simple. This clip is just funny. Follow me on Twitter: @DinoGomez.

60% of NBA Players are Broke 5 Years into Retirement

Now I’m not some insurance broker or some retirement investor who wants NBA players to throw money at me…well not entirely, but this is an interesting story. After all, NBA players make millions of dollars fairly quickly nba_ballersand are seen living lavish lives so how could they possibly become broke 5 years into retirement?

The fact is a lot of celebrities like to “over hype” their wealth. They land an NBA contract and go spend all of it before they have earned it on the court.  The lifestyle they live at the time is rich and includes multiple vacation homes and Ferraris in their driveway, but the question is whether they will be able to continue that lifetyle when those paychecks stop coming in. According to a study by mediatakeout.com from 2008, nearly 60% of NBA players go bankrupt after 5 years of retirement because they don’t save their money.  They tend to mistake how expensive upkeep is and providing for a family and a posse and before long they need another career.

Good story? Want more interesting hoops news? Follow me on Twitter: @DinoGomez.

Great NBA Twitter Accounts

Since everybody and their mom is on Twitter, I thought that I would go ahead and list some of those NBA players who have also joined the bandwagon. Now not all of the following players actually tweet every message themselves… some players have ghost tweeters or people that tweet messages for them. However all the following accounts are real and do represent the players themselves.The following list is composed of those accounts which I enjoy following and those which tweet often. A more comprehensive list can be found at Blogs with Balls.nba-twit1